Very often are we floored by a custom bike that takes the original model and turns it into something that’s better than what we expected. Yet that’s what 27-year-old Benjamin Blanchard was able to accomplish.

The French graphic designer took a Triumph Speed Triple bike and injected some straight up attitude into it. Already sporting a powerful 1,050cc DOHC three-cylinder, fuel injected engine, Blanchard went out of his way to re-model the bike to his liking. Carbon fiber was used on the bodywork of the bike, with incredible detail put on a lot of its parts.

The prevalent use of carbon fiber on the bike drastically reduced its weight, making it lighter and faster than any of the standard Speed Triple’s out there. The light weight of the bike, combined with its powerful engine, has turned an already impressive Speed Triple into the Impoz Speed Racer.

It takes a really impressive presence to catch our attention. Benjamin Blanchard managed to achieve that - and more.               

McLaren is making its way back into the GT sports car racing scene with a limited number of GT3 racing cars based on the MP4-12C sports car. These models will be designed and developed by McLaren and CRS Racing, and should make their first racing debut in the 2012 European FIA GT3 Series.

"The 12C’s architecture and design was always aimed at high-performance and ease of maintenance - two key criteria for potential customers. Combine that with the vast amount of racing experience in our automotive team, and CRS Racing’s specialist development experience, and the 12C GT3 should be an exciting proposition for the top teams planning to race in GT3 from 2012."

McLaren is confident that the MP4-12C’s revolutionary lightweight one-piece moulded carbon chassis, high levels of downforce and aerodynamic performance, and focus on form and function make it an obvious choice to bring back racing success to the McLaren name. The last win McLaren had was in the McLaren F1 GTR when it won the Lemans Series 15 years ago. The MP4-12C GT3 will be the first McLaren car built for FIA GT series racing since the McLaren F1 GTR finished production in 1997.

Press Relaease : 

The McLaren MP4-12C GT3 will make its world debut at the 2011 Goodwood Festival of Speed, held from June 30, 2011 - July 3, 2011. The model has received a front radiator, which increases the maximum ambient temperature at which the car can run, along with a new gearbox cooler mounted on the rear Aerodeck. Check out the modified racer in the 16 new high res images that have been added to our picture gallery!

The 12C GT3 looks similar to the production version car, but McLaren has added a new aerodynamics package in compliance with GT3 regulations, incorporating a new front splitter, door blade, rear wing, diffuser, and louvers in the front fenders.

The new 12C GT3 car is based on the standard 12C. It is being built on the McLaren carbon MonoCell chassis, which weighs just 75kg and is produced in a revolutionary one-piece mold. Under the hood, there is the same 3.8-liter twin turbo V8 as found in the standard model, but tuned to racing specifications. The engine will be mated to a 7-speed SSG dual-clutch Graziano transmission operated by a bespoke paddle-shift system developed specifically for racing.